Cosplay Authenticity

[Tler]

I was just wondering what part of a cosplay do people focus most on or have to get right to feel they've portrayed a character adequately. The clothes? The hair? Props? I ask because the character I'm cosplaying has red hair (kinda faded, but NOT pink ><) and I was going to dye a white wig I ordered but then stupid things happened and I never got my order. I guess what I'm really asking of your opinion is how disappointing would it be to not get a character's hair color right? Or if it was symbolically represented? I was thinking of weaving a mess of red/pink ribbons in my hair.

*sigh* I'm sorry if this sounds like a nit-picky post, but personally, I have high expectations when costuming and hair is a big detail with me. I was, and still am, quite frustrated that the wig/mail incident occurred and wonder if anyone else has these detail issues. Advice on getting over it would help (and I am curious as to what people think concerning the initial question).

[redroses3164]

For me personally, good hair/wigs can potentially make or break a cosplay if the character has a signature hair style or color. For example, take any protagonist from the Final Fantasy series. If the hair wasn't done nicely with the gravity spikes of doom (Cloud anyone?), then the character looks off already.

Clothes are important too of course. There are some wacky designs out there that is difficult to do. If someone was missing some tiny element of a costume, I doubt I'd really care. Now if it was something huge like totally different colors are used, then yeah that messes up the cosplay.

For hair color, I think it depends. For your case, it sounds like hair color is really important for the character.

I was thinking of weaving a mess of red/pink ribbons in my hair.

I'll be blunt. That sounds like a bad idea. Maybe if you provided a reference picture of the character you want then it may be a better idea. I highly doubt it though.

Sorry, I never had any type of wig/mailing blunder before. Well... minus one Ebay lost item through the mail. I just emailed the person that it was lost and never delivered to my house and they just refunded my money so no big deal there.

[obliviousedward]

I know what you mean about authenticity.  I'm a HUGE perfectionist, and it doesn't end at cosplay. XD  When I first get the idea for a character to cosplay, I imagine the "perfect" costume in which everything is spot-on.  However, when it comes down to it, no matter how badly I want to get the look as accurate as possible, there are just some things that I can't do (right now, at least; there are some things my schedule just doesn't allow).  Either there's a detail in the costume that got overlooked (or that I just didn't have time to make), or a prop that I couldn't get, or the hairstyle is slightly off.  Then again, these are things that are bound to happen; after all, there are just some characters that can't be perfectly and accurately cosplayed as, usually because of a gravity-defying hairstyle or a costume detail that is physically impossible to make without altering.  These are things that a person should expect and accept when attempting a cosplay.

I know what you mean about the hair color thing.  While I can't truely relate to the wig mishap (which I'm very sorry to hear about, by the way), I at least understand not wanting to get a character's hair color wrong.  So far, I've only been cosplaying as characters who have brown hair, since that's my natural hair color and I really don't want to dye my hair at this point (or use a wig).  That's just me.  This year, however, I'm cosplaying Robin Sena from Witch Hunter Robin; her hair is a lighter brown, but I've seen others cosplay as her with darker hair.  The way I see it, if others can cosplay successfully as her with a darker hair color, then why can't I?

Basically, what I'm trying to say is, even though you can't get a character's hair exactly right, it's not something you should worry over constantly.  I'm not saying you shouldn't be frustrated over not receiving your wig; heck, I would be too!  But the fact is that you don't have it, and now that you know that, you should work with what you have.  In all honesty, I'm not quite sure about the red/pink ribbons idea.  I'm really not sure what advice to give you in this area.  But if I think of any ideas, I'll post them here, okay?

In any case, best of luck to you!  I hope things work out in the end. ;)


Also, sorry for the uber-long post.  I think I got carried away. XD

[questionette]

You could get some semi-perminant hair dye and style your real hair that way?

[Tler]

My hair is dark brown/black, so I don't know of any dye that will get my hair that color without bleaching it first, which is something I do not want to do.

Can anyone tell me if there are any good spray-on hair dyes? Like the cheap Halloween hair color stuff? I have little faith in those ever since I tried to spray my hair Kenshin Red a few years ago, but if anyone knows of any that might work at least ok....

Hmm...didn't realize the ribbon idea would be so bad. I thought since her hair was in braided pigtails, I could just wrap the strands or something...ah well. I suppose I'll just have to rely on my clothes and prop. Thank you for your input!

[Yukari Kaiba]

i think as long as you're able to get the hairstyle down with your own hair (providing that it can be done), i think you'll be ok with getting away with not having the right hair color. i agree with redroses, hairstyle can either make or break a cosplay, and i also agree that the ribbon idea is not the best option to be honest. i totally know what you mean about being perfectionist with all aspects of a costume (i know i am XD), but its not something to completely freak out over. i hope you're able to work something out - good luck!

[obliviousedward]

I thought since her hair was in braided pigtails, I could just wrap the strands or something...

Well, now that I have a mental picture of what the hairstyle looks like, the ribbon thing sounds plausible! XD  In that case, I say go for it, and if it turns out not looking like you want, then try something else. :3

Good luck! <3

[questionette]

I have another question about cosplay authenticity as well -_-

I'm cosplaying Lenalee Lee from D gray man, and I only watched like 15 episodes before I decided I wanted to be her.

So I go out and buy the fabric and everything and start making the costume
and realize that her outfit is BLACK and NOT NAVY BLUE

here's the character (sorry big image, & too lazy to resize)

[Rette]

I like to think that there's a bit of, shall we say, artistic license involved in any creative project, which you can use to write off any alterations you've made to a costume for various reasons. I use it to excuse the fact that some things in anime are physically impossible to render accurately in reality. You can also use it to add things you think make the costume look more interesting, or to make a unique variation.

I am a perfectionist and try to be as accurate as possible but sometimes you're allowed to make choices about something you're making. If you have navy blue fabric, go for it. It'll probably turn out great.

[redroses3164]

Hmm...didn't realize the ribbon idea would be so bad. I thought since her hair was in braided pigtails...*snips quote*

Can you provide a reference picture (online or scanned or whatever)? Since it's braided pigtails, the ribbon idea might not be as bad as I imagined.

@questionette - Generally, navy blue is hard to tell versus black so I don't see much of a problem with that. If you can really tell it's navy blue, then just don't stick out in the sun so people won't know it's navy blue. XD

[Sora]

It depends on the cosplay for me. Some I care more than others, though I never do the eyes.

[shinjiboy]

I have to agree with a lot of the comments made on this thread.  IMO, hair is the big finisher.  The costume designs can have slight alterations.  Small details are not important unless you're entering a contest or do Cosplay as a true hobby.  But if you fail to have the right hair style, I think the cosplay is a bit lopsided. 

For example, I'm cosplaying as Ikki from Air Gear (the casual wear).  Based on the anime, his jacket has two black stripes on the collar, one on each wrist, and one near the waist.  However, the jacket I picked off of Ebay does not adhere to this rule.  It has some baby blue and certain white stripes replace the black ones.  So what?  Maybe I'm an embarrassment to Air Gear cosplayers out there.  Who knows?  My hair however, is going to be like Ikki's.  I made sure of this by going to a hair studio to cut my hair...I've seen other Ikki Cosplayers and though they have all the right gear, their hair is completely wrong.  So, hair style is one of the most important factors for the cosplay.  Coloring is a whole different issue.  It's more of the icing, but completely acts as a social impediment in most cases.

Tell me what you think.